


The scarlet dawn

by AhsokaBonteri



Category: Star Wars Prequel Trilogy, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Battle, F/M, Falling In Love, Forbidden Love, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Love, Master & Padawan Relationship(s), Romance, The Balance of the Force, The Dark Side of the Force, The Force, The Light Side of the Force, Violence, War
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-28
Updated: 2019-04-28
Packaged: 2020-02-09 09:17:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,055
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18635233
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AhsokaBonteri/pseuds/AhsokaBonteri
Summary: "Never forget your first murder."These words of Master Skywalker Ahsoka repeated over and over again.A simple reminder is slightly cooling the heat spreading through her veins.Mandalore was burning.The new day was born through the scarlet dawn.She feels herself the same - burned and ruined.





	The scarlet dawn

**Author's Note:**

> This is my new work (original is written in my native language: Russian; and this is a copy in English (i'm still learning))

_ "Never forget your first murder." _

 

These words of Master Skywalker Ahsoka repeated over and over again.

A simple reminder is slightly cooling the heat spreading through her veins.

Mandalore was _burning_.

The new day was born through the scarlet dawn.

She feels herself the same - burned and ruined.

 

The horror rolling in waves broke into utter confusion. Then it transformed into something that had not been named yet.None of the known words came to mind. It was not rage, not disgust, and certainly not an insult. And not even grief.

The Call of the Dark Side of the Force weakened. As if the sound had been abruptly lowered, as if she suddenly found herself not needed by this always hungry monster.

The light died away, and in the place where the heat of thousands of Jedi souls used to throb, the abyss turned black. Icy, scorched wasteland.

  
Total loneliness was much worse than death, worse than losing a battle, a million times more terrible than the painful death at the hands of Darth Maul.

_ “It would be better if he killed me.” _

The disgusting thought almost spun on the tip of the tongue and burned consciousness unpleasantly.

 

_ “If Rex was not there.” _

It should have cheered up. But - no, it didn't. Rex didn't shoot, not because he didn't want to, not because he was loyal, but only because he took out his mind-controlled chip.

There was something in the captain's eyes that a little earlier Tano had noticed in the expression of Maul. The shadow of something unbearably bitter, such that wanted to close the eyes and turn away.

Wanted to forget. Wanted not to know.

Not to see, not to hear, not to think.

And do not feel the smell of burning flesh and burnt rags that was ripping nostrils.

The blade with a special, rumbling hum ran through the white armor, touching the living flesh. The lightsaber killed bloodlessly, but shredding droids into pieces was hundreds of times more pleasant than cutting off heads with a Republican commando.

 

The helmet with an orange-white drawing on it rolled back to Rex's feet. And he didn't find the strength to step over it. The clone-captain walked around, taking a wide step to the right. 

Over the past day everything has merged into a single scarlet haze. Red flames devouring Mandalore. Pure red blood. Maul's face burning with crimson fury. The scarlet dawn of a new day.

The taste of salt and iron seemed to burn into the very lips. Ahsoka involuntarily thought: what would Lux say if he sees her now. He would probably be horrified. Or not.  The senator from Onderon had many times more chances to survive the nightmare that was happening across the galaxy than the overthrown Padawan or AWOL clone.

 

\- A dozen fighters, three hundred meters. “Ten hours”.

 

Rex spoke dryly. Words flew with a whistle, as if scratching his tongue. He hadn't looked at Ahsoka in the eyes for several hours in a row, as if he was afraid that somehow someone else’s evil will would force him to throw his blaster and shoot his commander's back. Or in the forehead, smashing togruta's brains on the dirty pavement . Or in the stomach, releasing the girl's guts and leaving her to die in the light of the nascent day.

Tano exhaled wearily, trying to concentrate, but even elementary techniques of Sense and Control were given with difficulty as if she had been cut off of the source, as if everything went dark, sticky and cold.  
Dead.

Oh, no. The marching squad of clones programmed to execute the bloody order was alive. Their life signatures were captured, if trying to sneak through the dense fog of sorrow. Clone-soldiers thought cohesively, clearly. Everyone had a rhythm in their heads with one single thought, and even the unique trace of each of these replicated living beings had darkened and blurred.

She wanted to close her eyes, just clench her fists, get angry even more and scream. Shout long, loudly, hysterically. And then open her eyes and see dozens of dead bodies in front of her.

  
_Traitors. They deserve it._  
The whisper of the Dark Side was a little lazy, well-fed and contented. This beast already ate to satiety.  
_Kill them. Kill them. Kill them!_

  
Deafening loud and unbearable.  
Ahsoka somehow felt in the Force herself and Rex. And that was the only thing that Tano caught on to.

 

\- We should get down into the garbage chute. So it will be faster.

  
Her own voice was hardly recognizable. But for Rex it was enough.

  
\- Follow you, Commander.  
\- Don't call me that anymore.

According to the protocol, the clones were required to use heat scanners, and therefore it was necessary to quickly move knee-deep in sewage. For the first time that day, the fire did something good for the fugitives, and none of them felt the need to start a conversation.  
When they emerged through a huge hole in the trunk pipe, the sky, covered with smoke, brightened from the bright midday sun. A ghostly blurred disc guesses somewhere on their heads.

 

\- We need to bury Ahsoka Tano.

 

Rex glanced down at her face and touched his aching nose. He took a deep breath, then removed his hand from his face and pointed to the base, which was half destroyed by the bombers.

 

\- We were here! - Ahsoka realized. - A little luck, and we will manage to create a record of registration. You have access, like any Republic commander.

 

Rex closed his eyes for a second and nodded emphatically, shifting the blaster pistol from one hand to another.

\- My personal weapon. - with a nod of his head Rex pointed at the gun and smiled bitterly. - I will take your life using it, comm ... _Ahsoka_. I will kill you using it.  
\- Kill. - echoed Tano, forcing herself to smile to her old friend.

  
_Doom._  


 

The word suddenly occurred to her when, gliding along the steel body of the crashed fighter, Ahsoka turned her attention to her reflection.

She wear _this very look_. Exactly the same was with Darth Maul, although he tried to hide it with fury.

And even Rex looked at his defeated brothers in the same way.

Mandalore was still burning, continuing to blush like the scarlet dawn of a new day. The Great Empire Day.


End file.
